Tag: Plants

Plants are not just decorative — many are natural air filters that work to clean up the indoor environment, absorbing irritating or harmful chemicals from the air. We find out more about two such plants. Anthurium Origins and specifications: Red anthuriums are also called “tongues of fire” because of their bright red, shiny, heart-shaped blossoms. This plant originates from South America. Its flowers may be red, pink, or white. Anthurium is a natural filter for ammonia and xylene. Beware, however: the plant’s sap and leaves may cause allergies in sensitive people….

Photo: Getty Images What would a caveman eat? That’s the basic premise behind the Paleo diet, a nutritional regimen centered on the same foods that sustained our hunter-gatherer ancestors. The trouble is, we don’t know exactly what those foods were. But archeologists at a site in the northern Jordan Valley in Israel have uncovered new and surprising clues about the real Paleo diet: It turns out ancient humans feasted on a wide variety of plants along with their fish and meat. The researchers from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Bar Ilan University identified 55 edible plant species that…

It should come as no surprise that plants play a vital role in maintaining our atmosphere by absorbing carbon dioxide and releasing oxygen through the well-known process of photosynthesis. (Thanks, high school earth science class.) But certain plant varieties go a step further by reducing airborne toxins, including carbon monoxide, formaldehyde and benzene, from the air we breathe in our homes and offices. “With all the synthetic building components and furnishings found within a modern building, there usually exist myriad chemicals in the indoor air,” B.C. “Bill” Wolverton, an environmental…